FREE St George's iPhone & Android App
Quick Links

Quick Links

St George's CE

Maple

2023 - 2024

Spring Term 1

This half-term, Maple focused the topic of the ‘The Ancient Greeks’. The children learnt about the significant events in history and how forward thinking and advanced the Ancient Greeks were. They particularly enjoyed learning about the Greek Gods and Goddesses and all the myths that came from that era.

In Literacy this half-term, the children learnt about a range of different genres. The children conducted their own research about Greek Gods and used this to inform their writing based on a non-chronological report. Maple explored exciting vocabulary linked to settings and wrote their own setting description based on an inspirational picture. After our whole school trip to Salisbury Cathedral, the children investigated recount writing. The children then used their trip to write their own recount detailing our exciting trip.

In Science this half term, Maple learnt about ‘Solids, Liquids and Gas’. The children learnt to compare and group materials together, according to whether they are solids, liquids or gases. They observed that some materials change state when they are heated or cooled, and measured the temperature at which this happens.

In Art and DT this term, Maple researched Ancient Greek vases and took inspiration to draw their own versions. They then made their designs into a 3D model, using clay, and painted them according to their designs.

The children have been investigating ‘Branching Databases’ in Computer Science this half term. The children were able to sort information in ‘yes/no’ criterion to sort pictures into different groups. They then moved on to develop this knowledge and used an online app to develop this into an online database.

Our RE learning this half term has focused on Judaism.  We have reflected on Shabbat and how and why this is celebrated.  We were interested to learn more about the connection between Shabbat with the Ten Commandments and the Creation Story, both of which are found in the Torah and the Old Testament.  We enjoyed hearing from different Jewish children and tried to understand how it might feel to experience Shabbat.  We really enjoyed recreating a Shabbat table in our classroom and baking our own Challah 'bread', plaiting the pieces very carefully.  

The whole school were delighted to visit Salisbury Cathedral. We were lucky enough to take part in a spirituality session, led by their education team, which focused on what spirituality means to us. We were given a wonderful tour of the Cathedral and learnt about the exciting history and the recent additions that were created just up the road from our school!

Maple Class Spring Term 1 2024

 

Autumn Term 2

This half-term, Maple continued to focus on the topic of the ‘Victorians’. The children learnt about the significant events in history and how this has influenced life today. Maple enjoyed learning about the difference in their lives compared to a Victorian child and realised that the changes made today are a vast improvement!

In Literacy this half-term, the children had some exciting topics. The character in our book wrote to us detailing his life as an orphaned child in the Victorian era. The children had the important task of writing back to the character, ensuring they used the correct layout of an informal letter. Maple also wrote a story based on an under the sea adventure. Their inspiration was a visit from the Science Dome which took the children under the sea, chased by sharks! The children’s effort and enjoyment this term when taking part in writing tasks has been a real joy to witness! 

In Science this half term, Maple learnt about ‘The Digestive System’. The children enjoyed learning about the process of digesting food in all its ‘gory’ details. They all decided the human body was quite an incredible machine! We then learnt about the importance of keeping our teeth healthy and clean. They learnt the different names and functions of our teeth and compared them to different animals and why their teeth look different to humans.

Maple Class were lucky enough to take part in Outdoor Classroom Day, which we enjoyed thoroughly in the glorious, although chilly, sunshine. We were lucky enough to be invited to Swanage seafront to look at the new sea and storm defences. These defences were decorated with the most wonderful artwork and some of the artists took us around and explained their inspiration and designs. We then visited the Nature Trail and made ‘Nature Wands’ which had to have a special power that would enhance the environment and planet.

Maple Class have had exciting Music lessons this term. In music, we have been very lucky to have had the opportunity to work with Mr Keys, from Dorset Music Service, who has helped us learn about creating music digitally.  The children have worked enthusiastically and enjoyed being creative with different sounds.  They especially liked adding a backing track to a video clip!  The children can still access this programme at home, using the same log in details.  

During French lessons with Mrs Goodwin, Maple have learnt how to say which games we prefer to play, building sentences with the correct verb. We have also learnt the traditional song 'Le Fermier dans son pre' (The Farmer's in his den) using props to help us learn new words. 

During the countdown to Christmas, Maple Class has enjoyed taking part in the many crafting opportunities. We decorated snowflakes for the Christmas Tree Festival, designed Christmas cards, which were printed by the PTA and taken part in the Christmas Dubber front cover competition, where a member of the class won the grand prize, and their design made the front cover!

 

Autumn Term 1

This half-term, Maple focused a topic on ‘Victorians’. Our focus was on how the Victorians influence the world we live in today. We learnt about the different laws which impacted children and how life was for families depending on if they were rich or poor. The children were shocked to learn that children worked so hard in very tough jobs from such a young age and had to pay for the privilege of coming to school. The children were pleased to learn that laws changed for children and some of the positive changes made during Queen Victoria’s reign.

In Literacy this half-term, the children enjoyed learning about different forms of poetry and their features. They listened to a variety of poetry such as rhymes, nonsense, limericks and descriptive poetry. The children were fascinated with the language used in ‘The Jabberwocky’ poem and worked hard to decipher the meaning of some of the words. The children were fantastic at using similes, metaphors and personification and worked hard to include examples within their own poems.

In Science this half term, Maple learnt about ‘Electricity and Circuits’. Maple looked for electrical items that were powered by the mains and they realised how much we relied upon electricity. We focused on open and closed circuits and investigated many different circuit examples to test if they would light a bulb, explaining why they did or didn’t using scientific language.

Maple class went on two exciting adventures this half term. First, we went out on a school trip to Swanage spotting many important statues and memorials from the Victorian era. We learnt about the trade and tourism that were available to people in the Victorian era in Swanage and how John Mowlem and George Burt made Swanage a popular tourist destination.

The second trip was a sponsored walk to Durlston. We were very lucky with the weather and managed to walk a staggering 7 miles, with lots of snacks to help us along the way.

What a busy half term we have had!

Maple Class Autumn Term 1 2023